How to Submit Tiki Code Changes

Here are step-by-step instructions on how to submit Tiki code changes under two different situations: when using a hosted server and when using your own PC as a server for development purposes. How to get commit access and Where to commit are recommended reading before starting these instructions.

Although the process is a little different for each situation, the basic idea is the same. First, you check out the developer version you wish to make changes to. Checking out means downloading the entire developer version from the repository (SourceForge.net) to your server using an SVN program. An SVN program is used because it will keep track of the changes you make and allow you to upload only the changed files to the repository. The entire Tiki program is downloaded (not just the files you want to change) so that you can install and test the Tiki version with your changes. After making and testing your changes, you commit them to the repository using the SVN program, which means your changed files are uploaded into the repository, creating a new Tiki development version that includes your changes.

Below, the processes for both situations (hosted server and PC as server) are described.

Prerequisites

In Either Situation

The following are must-haves in order to commit whether you are using a hosted server or your own PC as the server:

SourceForge Account: You will need to have an account at SourceForge.net - click here to register for one.

Project Administrator Permission: A Tiki Project Administrator will need to grant you permission to write to the code repository by adding your SourceForge username to the Tiki project as developer. Project Administrators are listed at http://sourceforge.net/projects/tikiwiki/develop.

Decide Version: There are different developer versions that changes can be made to. Before you begin, decide or get advice on which version you should download and make changes to. See Where to commit for more information. Which version you intend to change affects the path you will need to specify when checking out and downloading those files. The paths for the different versions can be found at SourceForge.net at https://svn.code.sf.net/p/tikiwiki/code/.

With a Hosted Server

The following are must-haves in order to commit on a hosted server in addition to the general prerequisites noted above:

SSH/Shell Access: You will need to access your server using shell access. This may be available from your web host (or you may be able to request it). If so, it will show up on the cPanel (if you have one) in the Security section. Otherwise there are free third-party programs that do the same thing (like PuTTy - and here's a list of such programs).

Linux and Mac

Linux and Mac machines already include a system utility called Terminal that provides shell access.

SVN: Your server will need to have SVN installed. If it's not installed, try typing apt-get install subversion while connected through shell access to install it.

With Your PC as Server

In addition to the must-haves noted above for either situation, here are additional must-haves in order to commit when using your PC as a server:

Third-Party SVN Program: You will need to install a third-party SVN program. A list of such programs can be found on this Wikipedia page, or see the Create an IDE page on this site which links to pages documenting how create a development environment.

Third-Party source code editor: You will need to download and install a third-party code editor to make the changes you wish to make. Do not use a plain text editor (like Word). A list of code editors can be found on this Wikipedia page, or see the Create an IDE page on this site for some tips.

Warning

It's very important to set your code editor to:(1) use Unix-style line breaks (LF) and not Windows style breaks (CF + LF), and (2) encode documents with UTF-8 without BOM (the "without BOM" is important).

Using a Hosted Server

Overview of Steps

Run the svn command to download the development version you want to change onto your server

Make the code changes you want to make and save them

Run the svn command to check your changes

Test your the Tiki install that you just changed to see if it functions

Run the svn command to commit your changes

End the SSH/Shell Access connection

These steps are described in detail below.

Note

These instructions assume you are using a standard shell on a Linux machine (i.e., your server is running Linux). If the server is using Windows, please make sure to run something like dos2unix before you commit.

Step 1: Get on Your Server Using SSH/Shell Access

Access the server you want to download to through SSH/Shell Access (through cPanel or third-party software). You will need to enter the following at a minimum:

The server's host name or IP Address

Your username on that server

The related password

Connect to remote server via SSH

ssh username@server.com
enter password

You can accept message about RSA key fingerprint.

Once on your server, move to the web directory

Move to the web directory, typically "www"

cd www

Create an empty directory on your server to download to like you would for a normal install of Tiki

Create a directory, for example "tiki"

mkdir tiki

Move to the directory you want to download to. For example, if you want to download to tiki, then type the following and hit enter:

Move to download directory

cd tiki

Step 2: Checkout Files via SVN

Type in svn checkout (path) . and hit enter to check out a development version. The (path) in the command is the path on SourceForge.net to the version you wish to make changes to.

Tip

See Where to commit for guidelines on deciding the appropriate version to commit to.

Below, two alternatives are shown: checking out a branch and checking out the trunk. In both cases, assume we found a bug in the last_mod plugin and therefore want to change the lib/wiki-plugins/wikiplugin_lastmod.php file.

Example: Checking out Branch 12.x (see Get code for available Versions)

Checking out branch 12.x

svn checkout https://svn.code.sf.net/p/tikiwiki/code/branches/12.x .

Example: Checking out Trunk

Checking out trunk

svn checkout https://svn.code.sf.net/p/tikiwiki/code/trunk .

Important

In both cases the last space and period at the end is very important - it causes the download to be made to here, in the directory where you are at when the command is made.

After hitting enter, you should see the file names scrolling up the screen as the files are downloaded. At the end, you should see a message telling which revision has been checked out, as in this screenshot:

Layer 1

Step 3: Make Your Changes

You can make changes either using your normal edit interface or through the shell access.

Using Normal Edit Interface

The easiest way to make changes is usually through whatever interface you normally use, for example by going through cPanel > File Manager and opening the file with your server's code editor. After you've made and saved your changes, go to Step 4.

Expand the instructions below if you're making changes through the shell access instead.

Use Shell Access to Make Changes

To edit a file, type "nano (filepath)", where (filepath) is the path of the file you want to change.
For instance, to change lib/wiki-plugins/wikiplugin_lastmod.php, you would type the following and hit enter:

Use nano command to edit file

nano lib/wiki-plugins/wikiplugin_lastmod.php

Screenshot:

Make sure you are in the nano edit screen.
It should look like the following screenshot, with the file path at the top, the code in the body, and a menu at the bottom:

Warning

If you don't see any code in the body and it says "New File" at the bottom, then you've typed in the file path incorrectly if you were intending to edit an existing file. Just exit (Ctrl+x) and retype the command.

Make changes and then exit (Cntrl+x)
This will bring up the following confirmation alert at the bottom of the screen:

Press Y to save change
This will bring up the following prompt at the bottom of the screen to confirm or change the file name:

Hit Enter to save to current file name
Unless you are creating a new file, confirm the file path shown and hit enter

Step 4: Check Your Changes

Go back to the SSH/shell access screen and make sure you are in the top level tiki directory, www/tiki in our example

In the SSH/shell access screen type svn diff to view your changes:

Use svn diff to view changes

svn diff

All changes you have made to all files will be shown as in the following screenshot:

As you can see, only one line was changed here (actually one character, an O was changed to a Z). Since this was the intention, we will move on to test the change.

Step 5: Test Your Tiki Install

If you haven't already, install the developer version you have downloaded and changed by following the normal Installation procedures through an internet browser.

Note

If you get a server error, you may need to set the permissions for all of the files you downloaded to 755.

Once installed, test Tiki to ensure that your changes work properly.

Step 6: Commit Your Changes

Type the svn commit command which consists of 3 parts:

The svn command: svn commit -m

A note describing the change: [FIX](short description of fix) for example
Each description should begin with one of the following tags which identify the type of change

[NEW] for additions of new features

[ENH] is an enhancement; not really new but makes things work better (e.g. look and feel, performance...)

[MOD] is a change in how things work, which may disrupt user habits, for example changing the default value of an option

[FIX] for bug fixes of any sort

[SEC] for security fix operations (implies [FIX])

[DB] for changes in the database

[REM] for feature removals

[KIL] for removals of unused or obsolete files (has been used in the sense of [REM] prior to Tiki 6)

[REF] for refactoring; changes the structure of the code (to make it cleaner or clearer), without changing its actual behaviour.

[REL] for the release process

[DOC] for improvements in the tips or contextual documentation provided to the user/admin

In case of a "backport," (committing a change already made in trunk to an earlier version), a backport reference should be added in front. For example, [bp/r28500] [FIX]... in a commit message to the branch branches/5x, means this fix is a backport of trunk revision 28500 to the next version of Tiki 5x. Depending on the period, backports are subject to an extra level of review so please read Quality Team and Where to commit first or ask on the mailing list or IRC if unsure.

The file path: filepath

You can leave the filepath off, in which case all changes shown in svn diff will be committed (even if more than one file has been changed)

Following our example, this would be:

Commit command

svn commit -m "[FIX] Fixed display of time zone, which was showing as %O" lib/wiki-plugins/wikiplugin_lastmod.php

Here's a screenshot (with a slightly different description):

You may be prompted for a password based on your server user name instead of your SourceForge user name. Just hit enter to move to a prompt for entering your SourceForge user name.{REMARKSBOX}

You will get a message indicating that your commit was successful

Step 7: Disconnect Shell Connection

Shell command

exit

Step 8: Be Proud of Yourself

Tiki is the collective work of hundreds of people. It works because volunteers, like you, take the time to make it better.

Notice of your commit will appear in the Tiki IRC chat channel. Go here to see it in the logs or, better yet, log on to the actual chat channel just before you commit to see the notice pop up live!

See next page for instructions when using your own PC as a development server.

Attached files

Search Wishes (subject only)

Keywords

The following is a list of keywords that should serve as hubs for navigation within the Tiki development and should correspond to documentation keywords.

Each feature in Tiki has a wiki page which regroups all the bugs, requests for enhancements, etc. It is somewhat a form of wiki-based project management. You can also express your interest in a feature by adding it to your profile. You can also try out the Dynamic filter.